Scroll compressor, and sealing method and sealing arrangement for mid-pressure chamber thereof

ABSTRACT

A scroll compressor and a sealing method and sealing arrangement for a mid-pressure chamber thereof are provided. The scroll compressor includes: a scroll compressor shell; a housing, mounted inside the scroll compressor shell; a fixed scroll, fixed onto the housing; an orbiting scroll, supported on the housing and cooperating with the fixed scroll; a driving mechanism, located between the orbiting scroll and the housing and connected to the orbiting scroll to drive the orbiting scroll to orbit; and a mid-pressure chamber, which is a cavity surrounded by a hub of the orbiting scroll and a part of the housing and which is sealed by two sealing members.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

Applicant hereby claims foreign priority benefits under U.S.C. §119 from Chinese Patent Application No. CN201310353427.5 filed on Aug. 14, 2013, the contents of which are incorporated by reference herein.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the field of refrigeration and air-conditioning, and in particular, to a scroll compressor, and a sealing method and a sealing arrangement for a mid-pressure chamber thereof.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Currently, in design of a high-pressure side of a compressor, two main approaches are used to seal a mid-pressure chamber of the compressor.

In a first approach, a mid-pressure chamber is located between a thrust bearing (between an orbiting scroll and a fixed scroll) and a sealing ring (at the bottom of a hub of the orbiting scroll). In this design, the thrust bearing between the orbiting scroll and the fixed scroll has a sealing function.

In the first approach, the surface of the thrust bearing requires a high machining precision in order to have the sealing function, which makes the thrust bearing have high cost. Moreover, in the first approach, sealing reliability is undesirable. There is tolerance between the orbiting scroll and the fixed scroll when the orbiting scroll and the fixed scroll cooperate together, which may lead to leakage on the thrust bearing. If the thrust bearing is used as a sealing member of the mid-pressure chamber, there may be a risk that the mid-pressure chamber is connected to a low-pressure chamber, thereby resulting in undesirable performance of the compressor.

In a second approach, a mid-pressure chamber is located between a thrust bearing (between an orbiting scroll and a fixed scroll) and a sealing ring (at the bottom of a hub of the orbiting scroll). The sealing ring is disposed on the fixed scroll.

In the second approach, because the sealing ring is mounted on the fixed scroll, the sealing ring may not be effective (i.e., may have a reliability problem) when the fixed scroll is assembled into a compressor.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the above, a sealing arrangement, a sealing method and a scroll compressor are provided.

According to an aspect of the present invention, a scroll compressor is provided, including:

a scroll compressor shell;

a housing, mounted inside the scroll compressor shell;

a fixed scroll, fixed onto the housing;

an orbiting scroll, supported on the housing and cooperating with the fixed scroll;

a driving mechanism, located between the orbiting scroll and the housing, and connected to the orbiting scroll to drive the orbiting scroll to orbit; and

a mid-pressure chamber, being a cavity surrounded by a hub of the orbiting scroll and a part of the housing, where the mid-pressure chamber is sealed by two sealing members.

In an example, the two sealing members are disposed on the housing.

In another example, a first sealing member of the two sealing members is located at a position where an outer end of a lower surface of a main body of the orbiting scroll is in contact with a first part at an upper portion of the housing, and a second sealing member of the two sealing members is located at a position where a bottom of the hub of the orbiting scroll is in contact with a second part at a lower portion of the housing.

In yet another example, the first sealing member is located in a groove in the first part of the housing, and/or the second sealing member is located in a groove in the second part of the housing.

In yet another example, the first sealing member is an elastic rubber sealing ring or a Teflon sealing ring; and/or the second sealing member is an elastic rubber sealing ring or a Teflon sealing ring.

In yet another example, the first sealing member is C-shaped or X-shaped; and/or the second sealing member is C-shaped or X-shaped.

In yet another example, the scroll compressor is a high-side compressor.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a method for sealing a mid-pressure chamber of the above scroll compressor is provided, where the method includes the following step:

sealing the mid-pressure chamber by using two sealing members, where the mid-pressure chamber is a cavity surrounded by a hub of an orbiting scroll of the scroll compressor and a part of a frame.

In an example, the two sealing members are disposed on the housing.

According to yet another aspect of the present invention, a sealing arrangement for sealing a mid-pressure chamber of a scroll compressor is provided, including:

two sealing members, adapted to seal the mid-pressure chamber of the scroll compressor, where the mid-pressure chamber is a cavity surrounded by a hub of an orbiting scroll of the scroll compressor and a part of a housing of the scroll compressor.

In an example, the two sealing members are disposed on the housing.

In another example, a first sealing member of the two sealing members is located at a position where an outer end of a lower surface of a main body of the orbiting scroll is in contact with a first part at an upper portion of the housing, and a second sealing member of the two sealing members is located at a position where a bottom of the hub of the orbiting scroll is in contact with a second part at a lower portion of the housing.

In yet another example, the first sealing member is located in a groove in the first part of the housing, and/or the second sealing member is located in a groove in the second part of the housing.

In yet another example, the first sealing member is an elastic rubber sealing ring or a Teflon sealing ring; and/or the second sealing member is an elastic rubber sealing ring or a Teflon sealing ring.

In yet another example, the first sealing member is C-shaped or X-shaped; and/or the second sealing member is C-shaped or X-shaped.

Conventionally, generally only one sealing member is used. In the embodiments of the present invention, a double-sealing design is used. In the double-sealing design, two sealing members, for example, sealing rings, are used. One sealing ring is located at a part of the housing which is in contact with an outer end of a lower surface of a main body of an orbiting scroll (i.e., located between the housing and the orbiting scroll), and the other sealing ring is located at a part of the housing which is in contact with a bottom of a hub of the orbiting scroll.

In the double-sealing design according to the embodiments of the present invention, there is no requirement of high machining precision for a thrust bearing as the surface of the thrust bearing need not have a sealing function, and there is no leakage problem or reliability problem, either. In the sealing arrangement according to the embodiments of the present invention, cost is reduced as high machining precision is not required for the thrust bearing. A sealing ring is disposed on the housing, and therefore, the sealing function is more reliable. Compared with the conventional art, the embodiments of the present invention can further have a larger surface of a mid-pressure chamber, which is important for broadening an operation map of a compressor.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Technical solutions and advantages of the present invention will be described in more detail in the following descriptions of embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings, where:

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a scroll compressor according to an embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of an area defined by a dotted box A in FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The following further specifically describes technical solutions of the present invention through the embodiments with reference to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2. In the specification, a same or similar reference sign indicates a same or similar member. The following descriptions of the implementation manners of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings are to explain a general inventive idea of the present invention, but shall not be construed as a limitation to the present invention.

The following describes a scroll compressor according to an embodiment of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 1 shows a scroll compressor 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The scroll compressor 100 includes: a scroll compressor shell 1; a housing 2, the housing 2 being fixed inside the scroll compressor shell 1; a fixed scroll 3, fixed on the housing 2; an orbiting scroll 4, being supported on the housing 2 and cooperating with the fixed scroll 3 to form a gas compression chamber 11; a lower support frame 5, fixed to a lower end of the scroll compressor shell 1; a driving mechanism 7, located between the orbiting scroll 4 and the housing 2 and delivering a rotating force via a crankshaft mechanism 71. An upper end of the crankshaft mechanism 71 is connected to the orbiting scroll 4 to drive the orbiting scroll 4 to orbit, and a lower end of the crankshaft mechanism 71 is supported on the lower support frame 5. A discharge valve (not shown) may be included in the scroll compressor 100, used to discharge gas in the gas compression chamber 11 and prevent the gas from flowing back to the scroll compressor 100.

The orbiting scroll 4 is supported by an upper surface or a support surface of the housing 2. A hermetic space is provided inside the scroll compressor shell 1, and the foregoing members, such as the fixed scroll 3, the orbiting scroll 4 and the housing 2, etc., are accommodated in the scroll compressor shell 1. A scroll wrap structure of the fixed scroll 3 and a scroll wrap structure of the orbiting scroll 4 may cooperate with each other to form the compression chamber 11. The fixed scroll 3 is disposed above the orbiting scroll 4. The driving mechanism 7 may be a motor that includes a stator 72 and a rotor 73, and the motor may drive the orbiting scroll 4 via the crankshaft mechanism 71.

During working of the scroll compressor 100, the scroll compressor 100 may suck gas from a suction port 9, and after the driving mechanism 7 (such as a motor) is started, the orbiting scroll 4 is driven by the crankshaft mechanism 71 and restrained by an anti-rotation coupling (not shown), and performs orbiting with a minor radius around the center of a base circle of the fixed scroll 3, so that the gas compression chamber 11 formed by the orbiting scroll 4 and the fixed scroll 3 generates high pressure and high temperature gas; and the high pressure and high temperature gas is discharged to a high-pressure chamber through a discharge port (not shown) of the fixed scroll along with the movement of the orbiting scroll 4; and then, the gas in the high-pressure chamber is discharged out of the scroll compressor through a discharge port (not shown). A suction check valve (not shown) may be included in the scroll compressor 100, used to prevent backflow of gas in the high-pressure cavity. The foregoing process is repeated, so that high pressure and high temperature gas can be continuously generated in the scroll compressor 100.

A sealing arrangement and a sealing method for a mid-pressure chamber 6 of the scroll compressor 100 will be described hereinafter in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 2, the mid-pressure chamber 6 may be a cavity surrounded by a hub 41 of the orbiting scroll 4 and a part of the housing 2. In this embodiment, for example, in an enlarged section view shown in FIG. 2, the mid-pressure chamber 6 may be surrounded by a hub 41 of the orbiting scroll 4. In the embodiment of the present invention, a sealing arrangement may include two sealing members 81 and 82 to seal the mid-pressure chamber 6, and in an example, the two sealing members 81 and 82 may be disposed on the housing 2 of the scroll compressor 100.

A first sealing member 81 of the two sealing members 81 and 82 is located at a position where a far end of a lower surface 43 of a main body portion 42 of the orbiting scroll 4 (i.e., an end far away from an axis of the orbiting scroll 4) is in contact with a first part 21 at an upper portion of the housing 2. A second sealing member 82 is located at a position where a bottom 44 of the hub 41 of the orbiting scroll 4 is in contact with a second part 22 at a lower portion of the housing 2.

As shown in FIG. 2, the first sealing member 81 and the second sealing member 82 may be disposed as follows: the first sealing member 81 may be located in a groove in the first part 21 of the housing 2 and the second sealing member 82 may be located in a groove in the second part 22 of the housing 2. The disposing manner of the first sealing member 81 and the second sealing member 82 is not limited to the foregoing specific implementation manner in FIG. 2. For example, the first sealing member 81 and the second sealing member 82 may further be directly disposed on respective surfaces of the first part 21 and the second part 22 of the housing 2, and in this case, no groove need be disposed at the first part 21 or the second part 22 of the housing 2.

As shown in FIG. 2, the first part 21 is an upper top surface of the housing 2 where the housing 2 is in contact with an outer end of the lower surface 43 of the main body portion of the orbiting scroll 4. The second part 22 is a lower upper surface of the housing 2 where the housing 2 is in contact with a bottom lower surface of the hub 41 of the orbiting scroll 4.

In an embodiment, the first sealing member 81 and/or the second sealing member 82 may be an elastic rubber sealing ring or a Teflon sealing ring. The first sealing member 81 and/or the second sealing member 82 may be C-shaped or X-shaped. However, a person skilled in the art may understand that, the sealing members 81 and 82 may be made of any suitable material and in any suitable shape according to a practical demand, as long as the sealing members 81 and 82 can seal the mid-pressure chamber 6. In an example, in specific implementation, the first sealing member 81 and the second sealing member 82 may be made of a same material and in a same shape.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the scroll compressor may be a high-pressure compressor or high-side compressor. In a high-side compressor, a suction port may be generally disposed at an upper portion of the compressor, and a discharge port may be disposed at a position slightly upper than the middle portion of the compressor.

The following specifically describes how to use the sealing member described in embodiments of the present invention to seal the mid-pressure chamber 6 of the scroll compressor 100.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the sealing method includes steps of:

sealing the mid-pressure chamber 6 by using the two sealing members 81 and 82, where the mid-pressure chamber 6 is located inside the scroll compressor 100 and is a chamber surrounded by the hub 41 of the orbiting scroll 4 and a part of the housing 2, the part being corresponding to the hub 41.

In an embodiment, a first sealing member 81 of the two sealing members 81 and 82 is located at a position where an outer end of a lower surface 43 of a main body portion 42 of the orbiting scroll 4 is in contact with a first part 21 at an upper portion of the housing 2, and a second sealing member 82 of the two sealing members 81 and 82 is located at a position where a bottom of the hub 41 of the orbiting scroll 4 is in contact with a second part 22 at a lower portion of the housing 2.

In an embodiment, the first sealing member 81 may be located in a groove in the first part 21 of the housing 2, and the second sealing member 82 may be located in a groove in the second part 22 of the housing 2.

In embodiments of the present invention, a double-sealing design is provided. Two sealing members, for example, sealing rings, are used. One sealing ring is located at a part of a housing which is in contact with a lower surface of an end of a main body of an orbiting scroll (i.e., between the housing and the orbiting scroll), and the other sealing ring is located at another part of the housing which is in contact with a lower surface of a bottom of a hub of the orbiting scroll.

In embodiments of the present invention, because the double-sealing design is used, there is no requirement of high machining precision for a surface of a thrust bearing of the scroll compressor and there is no leakage problem in a sealing member or a reliability problem caused by a sealing member. In the sealing arrangement in the embodiments of the present invention, the cost is reduced as the machining precision for the thrust bearing need not be high. A sealing ring is disposed on the housing, and therefore, the sealing function is more reliable. Compared with the conventional part, the embodiments of the present invention may further enlarge a surface of the mid-pressure chamber due to double-sealing design, which is important for broadening an operation map of a compressor.

The foregoing are some embodiments of the present invention, and a person of ordinary skill in the art may understand that modifications can made to these embodiments without departing from the principle and spirit of the overall idea of the present invention. The scope of the present invention is limited by the claims and equivalents of the claims. 

1-18. (canceled)
 19. A scroll compressor, comprising: a scroll compressor shell; a housing, mounted inside the scroll compressor shell; a fixed scroll, fixed onto the housing; an orbiting scroll, supported on the housing and cooperating with the fixed scroll; a driving mechanism, located between the orbiting scroll and the housing, and connected with the orbiting scroll to drive the orbiting scroll to orbit; and a mid-pressure chamber, being a cavity surrounded by a hub of the orbiting scroll and a part of the housing, and wherein the mid-pressure chamber is sealed by two sealing members.
 20. The scroll compressor according to claim 19, wherein, the two sealing members are disposed on the housing.
 21. The scroll compressor according to claim 20, wherein, a first sealing member of the two sealing members is located at a position where an outer end of a lower surface of a main body of the orbiting scroll is in contact with a first part at an upper portion of the housing, and a second sealing member of the two sealing members is located at a position where a bottom of the hub of the orbiting scroll is in contact with a second part at a lower portion of the housing.
 22. The scroll compressor according to claim 21, wherein, the first sealing member is located in a groove in the first part of the housing, and the second sealing member is located in a groove in the second part of the housing.
 23. The scroll compressor according to claim 22, wherein, the first sealing member is an elastic rubber sealing ring or a Teflon sealing ring; and/or the second sealing member is an elastic rubber sealing ring or a Teflon sealing ring.
 24. The scroll compressor according to claim 22, wherein, the first sealing member is C-shaped or X-shaped; and/or the second sealing member is C-shaped or X-shaped.
 25. The scroll compressor according to claim 20, wherein, the scroll compressor is a high-side compressor.
 26. A method for sealing a mid-pressure chamber of a scroll compressor, comprising: sealing the mid-pressure chamber by using two sealing members, the mid-pressure chamber being a cavity surrounded by a hub of an orbiting scroll of the scroll compressor and a part of a housing of the scroll compressor.
 27. The method according to claim 26, wherein, the two sealing members are disposed on the housing.
 28. The method according to claim 27, wherein, a first sealing member of the two sealing members is located at a position where an outer end of a lower surface of a main body of the orbiting scroll is in contact with a first part at an upper portion of the housing, and a second sealing member of the two sealing members is located at a position where a bottom of the hub of the orbiting scroll is in contact with a second part at a lower portion of the housing.
 29. The method according to claim 28, wherein, the first sealing member is located in a groove in the first part of the housing, and the second sealing member is located in a groove in the second part of the housing.
 30. The method according to claim 29, wherein, the first sealing member is an elastic rubber sealing ring or a Teflon sealing ring; and/or the second sealing member is an elastic rubber sealing ring or a Teflon sealing ring.
 31. The method according to claim 28, wherein, the first sealing member is C-shaped or X-shaped; and the second sealing member is C-shaped or X-shaped.
 32. A sealing arrangement for sealing a mid-pressure chamber of a scroll compressor, comprising: two sealing members, adapted to seal the mid-pressure chamber of the scroll compressor, wherein the mid-pressure chamber is a cavity surrounded by a hub of an orbiting scroll of the scroll compressor and a part of a housing of the scroll compressor.
 33. The sealing arrangement according to claim 31, wherein, the two sealing members comprises a first sealing member and a second sealing member; wherein the first sealing member is located at a position where an outer end of a lower surface of a main body of the orbiting scroll is in contact with a first part at an upper portion of the housing, and the second sealing member is located at a position where a bottom of the hub of the orbiting scroll is in contact with a second part at a lower portion of the housing.
 34. The sealing arrangement according to claim 33, wherein the first sealing member is located in a groove in the first part of the housing, and the second sealing member is located in a groove in the second part of the housing.
 35. The sealing arrangement according to claim 34, wherein, the first sealing member is an elastic rubber sealing ring or a Teflon sealing ring; and/or the second sealing member is an elastic rubber sealing ring or a Teflon sealing ring.
 36. The sealing arrangement according to claim 34, wherein, the first sealing member is C-shaped or X-shaped; and/or the second sealing member is C-shaped or X-shaped. 